Friday, 24 June, 2022
Aid for Afghanistan’s earthquake; Trumpet the bloodhound is best in show; two State of Origins in one weekend; and Florida’s biggest python.
LINKS
Measuring earthquakes: magnitude: https://www.mtu.edu/geo/community/seismology/learn/earthquake-measure/magnitude/
Trumpet the bloodhound: https://people.com/pets/trumpet-the-bloodhound-wins-best-in-show-at-2022-westminster-dog-show/
Westminster Dog Show – Photo Gallery https://honey.nine.com.au/pets/westminster-dog-show-2022-purebred-dogs-cute/394d82be-3aae-4d40-86ff-7a10c3f8279c#3
‘Have A Go’ Month – Australian Olympic Committee
https://www.olympics.com.au/have-a-go/
Squiz Kids for Schools – Free 30 Day Trial: https://www.squizkids.com.au/squiz-kids-for-schools/
Squiz Kids Apple Subscriber Content – Free 7 Day Trial: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/squiz-kids/id1494238283
Squiz Kids Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squizkids/?hl=en
Got a birthday coming up and you want a shout-out? Send us an email at [email protected]
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
THE LOWDOWN
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International aid agencies were scrambling yesterday, trying to get into Afghanistan and help the thousands affected by a huge earthquake which is believed to have killed over a thousand people and left many thousands without shelter.
The 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck early on Wednesday in an eastern province of Afghanistan.
And while larger earthquakes have happened, the fact many people in this part of Afghanistan live in homes made of mud mean the damage is far greater than it may have been in places where buildings are made more solidly.
Add to that the fact that since the Taliban took over the country – lots of aid agencies were forced to leave. So it’s hard to get help to the Afghans that need it most.
Earthquakes happen when tectonic plates – which criss-cross over one another to form the Earth’s crust – grind up against one other, causing the ground to tremble.
Where the plates push up against one another at places called fault lines, and the pressure builds there until one plate shifts – causing the ground to shake. The bigger the pressure release, the higher the magnitude, the more destructive the earthquake is. And at 6.1 magnitude that’s a pretty big earthquake. I’ve stuck a link in today’s episode notes to an interesting table explaining earthquake magnitude measurements – and how often they occur. Did you know that earth tremors of 2.5 magnitude or less happen in their millions every year – but they’re so small, we don’t notice them? Fascinating.
SPIN THE GLOBE
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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops – and today we’ve landed in New York City, where the Westminster Dog Show has just taken place and a bloodhound called Trumpet has been named top dog.
Trumpet beat a French bulldog called Winston,, a German shepherd, a Maltese, an English setter, a Samoyed and a Lakeland terrier to take the Best in Show trophy.
TRumpet is the first bloodhound to win the prestigious event – beating out more than 3,500 dogs who entered, representing over 200 different breeds.
Go Trumpet!
Squiz-E the Newshound will be so pleased (HOWL).
I’ve stuck links to the dog show in today’s episode notes, including video of my favourite bit, where grown adults spring along awkwardly beside their dogs to get them to run. It’s comedy AND it’s cute – what’s not to love?
SPORT TIME
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Lovers of all things sporting: you’re in for a treat again this weekend – whether it be balls of the round or egg-shaped variety.
The Super Netball finals series continues this weekend with the Vixens taking on the Giants in the preliminary final. The winner of that match goes on to face off against the West Coast Fever in the grand final on July 3.
For lovers of rugby league: the weekend will get off to a cracking start with tonight’s Women’s State of Origin game in Canberra. Can the Queensland Maroons repeat the winning form that saw them win last year?
Meanwhile: all eyes on the east coast of Australia will be turned to the west on Sunday evening as the second of the State of Origins games is played in Perth.
Can the Queensland Maroons wrap up the three-game series with a back-to-back win? Or will a new look NSW Blues side have what it takes to keep those banana benders at bay?
And then there’s the other pressing question: will anyone in Perth have a clue what’s going on? AFL, afterall, is very definitely the sport of choice in that part of the world.
May the best team win …. Especially if they’re Blue … but don’t tell my kids I said that ..
ANIMAL KINGDOM
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Look, if you’re like me and the very sight of a snake makes your blood turn cold, then maybe close your ears for this segment.
Wildlife rangers in Florida in the United States this week reported having captured the largest python on record.
Measuring 5 and half metres in length – and weighing just under 100 kilograms – the female Burmese python was pulled from waters in the southern US state – in what conservationists were describing as an important win.
The Burmese python is an introduced species – and one which is causing havoc to the ecosystems of Florida. The pythons breed rapidly and prey on native wildlife – and a program has been introduced to try to control their numbers.
Get this: when they cut open the python, they discovered its last meal had been an adult deer.
Eugh..
THE SQUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- Name one of the two team competing in this weekend’s Super Netball Preliminary Final?
- What breed of dog won the Westminster Dog Show?
- What was that dog’s name?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s June 24 … today is Matariki in New Zealand – which is the Maori New Year – celebrating the day the Matariki constellation of stars is visible in the night’s sky.
It’s also a Friday – and that means a heap of birthday shout outs for today and the coming weekend – for which we’re going to need to crack out the ol’ birthday reggae tune .. .
The following Squiz Kids are celebrating a birthday today… Meagan and Jette from Cannon Hill, Stefan from Abbotsford, Elli from Hunters Hill, Sienna from Bridgeman Downs, Ben from Ivanhoe, Zoe from Sydney, Hendrix from Hobart, Kikki from Tabulam, Aidan listening over in Korea and to my special buddy Will from Woolloongabba. Narbethong Special School
A belated shout out goes to Abbie from Ballarat.
Not forgetting those of you celebrating a birthday over the weekend … Vivaan from Rouse Hill, Fergus from Exeter, Shania from Altona Meadows, Theodora from Ringwood North, Zahil from Wagga Wagga, Eve from Granton, Jonathan from Albany Hills, Ruby from Eleebana, Kaeleisha from Tumut and Eli from Greensborough.
And some special requests for classroom shoutouts this Friday…. Goodbye and goodluck to Mrs Alcorn from class 5/6 at Cannon Hill State School, birthday wishes to Mr Bourke from class 5/6B at Stockton Public School and lastly a farewell to Khloe from class F2 and Ms Walsh at Hammond Park Primary School.
The S’Quiz Answers:
- Vixens or Giants
- Bloodhound
- Trumpet